4 Keys to Great Customer Service - by John Chapin

I really enjoyed this article by John Chapin on how to provide stellar customer service, and thought you might, too. While the article is geared to insurance companies, the basic principles apply to any industry, most certainly including radio sales.

4 Keys to Selling More by Delivering Great Customer Service

One of the best ways to ensure you make more sales is to make sure you’re taking excellent care of your customers and one of the best ways to do that is to go back to the basics of GREAT customer service.  Providing great customer service ensures that your customers feel appreciated and are being taken care of; if you take care of customers, they will take care of you.

4 Keys to Great Customer Service

1) The customer is always right.

Yes, this still is, and always has been, the number one key to GREAT customer service. Over the past several years I’ve heard some debate over this fundamental rule. No wonder why customer service is absolutely horrendous in most businesses. Make no mistake, this key must be in place if you’re going to provide superior customer service. In conjunction with this fundamental rule, keep the following ideas in mind:

• The customer is always your top priority.
• Customers come before the phone, paperwork, and rules and procedures.
• Focus on helping the customer, don’t focus on the sale.
• Treat each customer with the same high level of service.
• Get it right/fix it right the first time.
• Good: Treat customers the way you want to be treated, better: treat them the way they want to be treated.

2) Be a great communicator.

It is said that the majority of problems in relationships stem from either a lack of communication or a breakdown in communication.  You have to stay in touch with customers and they must be able to stay in touch with you. Here are some ideas to keep in mind in regard to communication:

• Have a regular schedule for staying in touch with customers.
• Communicate clearly, be understandable, and don’t use industry jargon or acronyms people aren’t familiar with.
• Answer your work phone as much as possible.
• Answer your cell phone as much as possible even when not at work.
• Return all calls and e-mails received before the end of the work day, on the same day.
• Be extremely detail oriented but not too wordy. Cover the what, why, who, when, where, and on what conditions and be as succinct as possible.
• Stay in touch and build long-term relationships: Get people on a mailing list, send cards, visit them occasionally.
• Communicate, even when there’s nothing to communicate. In other words, if you’re working on something for someone, give them scheduled, timely updates even if there’s no news, just so they know you’re still working on it.
• Ask people when they want to hear from you and in what form they want to hear from you.

3) Do what you say you’ll do and go above and beyond.

• Call when you say you’ll call.
• Show up on time, prepared.
• Follow up with people promptly and with correct information.
• Look for unique ways to deliver sooner and more than expected or paid for.
• Give something for nothing and/or add something extra.
• Take an extra step when helping someone.
• Be better and be different in a good way.

4) Treat people right.

• Treat each customer as if he/she is a close friend or family member.
• When you first meet someone focus on being likeable, agreeable, getting along, and making a friend.
• Say please, thank you, and you’re welcome; be as nice a person as possible all day every day.
• Make it easy for people to do business with you.
• Take personal responsibility and see things through to the end.
• Before you say goodbye, make sure your customer is completely happy and ask, “Is there anything else I can help you with?”
• Deliver as close to 24/7 personal customer service as you can. After I give someone my cell phone number, I say: “You can call that number at anytime, 24 hours a day. At night I put my phone on silent, so even if you think of something at 3 in the morning, call.”

Keep in mind that when it comes to customer service, you are compared to everyone your customer comes into contact with. This not only includes other insurance companies, it includes all other companies your customers have to deal with including the phone and cable companies, the power company, credit card companies, grocery and department stores, and anyone else they do business with or communicate with. If you follow the four keys above regarding great customer service, you will always stand out when compared to these other organizations and you will make more sales as a result.

John Chapin is an award winning sales speaker, sales trainer, coach, and co-author of the gold-medal winning "Sales Encyclopedia" a comprehensive how-to guide on selling. "Sales Encyclopedia" is written for sales professionals in all industries at any level of experience.